South Carolina lost its top offensive threat Saturday, potentially for the rest of the year. Wide receiver Deebo Samuel’s fractured leg means at best he might return for a brief period late in the season.
Replacing him will not be easy for the Gamecocks, although they’re better equipped to deal with the loss than they were in his first two seasons.
If all you did to assess Samuel’s impact was to check South Carolina’s receiving stats, you might not see why this is so impactful. He’s had five catches in each game this season for an 83-yards-per-game average, with three of those going for touchdowns.